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Things are looking up at the Pub with No Beer June 4, 2007 For a town with a population 50, Taylors Arm is extraordinarily lucky. They have an excellent brewery turning out some of the nicest handcrafted beers I’ve tasted.
Murray and assistant brewer Shawn Sherlock outlined the characteristics of the beers we were going to sample then it was time to get personally acquainted with the Sassy Blonde, a Belgian Pale Ale which Murray believes is the only beer of its kind brewed in the Southern Hemisphere. This one is underpinned by a distinctive Belgian yeast, has a spicy orange flavour and restrained bitterness from imported Styrian Golding hops. It’s good with seafood, I’m told. We learned the next beer, Nirvana, is a hybrid of an American pale ale, combined with the classic English pale ale. It has a citrusy/spicy aroma. Being a good Kiwi, I was pleased to hear Murray generously flavours this brew with hops from Motueka in New Zealand. This is well balanced with biscuity/toffee flavours from selected caramalts. While we pondered this ale, conversation moved to food and beer pairing, something that we’re hearing mentioned a lot more these days. This beer would be a great accompaniment to spicy cuisines such as Indian, Thai or Vietnamese which sometimes don’t quite meld with wines.
I love it when people keep the best till last and I was pretty excited when Shawn took the top off their very exclusive Anniversary Ale. Only 800 bottles were released and there aren’t too many left so we were privileged to liberate one of them. Actually, it’s probably a good thing that supplies are dwindling because I could develop an addiction. Shawn watched me take my first tentative sip of this unique wheat and barley brew and he was clearly expecting some sort of reaction. There was a Wow! moment. Licorice, toffee, more of those Kiwi hops. Each sip brought another layer of flavour. I could taste fruit, malt… Apparently half the batch was conditioned in old Merlot casks before being back-blended with a fresher batch prior to bottling. The name Nirvana had already been taken or it might have been a good choice for this ale. This beer is in an elegant champagne-style container and fetches around $30 a 750ml bottle. It has a 10% alcohol by volume kick so is one to be thoughtfully savoured. The wedge of blue cheese Murray and Shawn presented certainly rounded out the exercise - a very happy marriage of flavours. Crème brulee is another food-matching suggestion. Murray started his beer-brewing journey after tasting some great brews in the States and deciding there was a gap in the Australian market. After just four months in operation, Murray's Craft Brewing Co won four medals for its Pale Ales - two at the tough New Zealand International Beer Awards, and two at the 2006 Australian International Beer Awards. It has continued its winning way in 2007. Now it's going to be up to clever entrepreneurial chefs and sommeliers to find a place for niche beers in their food matching - already some in Melbourne have started to tempt both the wine and beer palate.
Murray's Craft Brewing Co. is headquartered on the site of the legendary Pub With No Beer Brewery at Taylors Arm, the very same pub that was immortalised in song by Slim Dusty in 1958. In a multi-million dollar investment, the historic hotel building was extended to accommodate the brewery. Boasting specially designed equipment handcrafted from copper and steel by artisans in the Czech Republic and the United States, Murray's Craft Brewery Co is believed to be the best showpiece microbrewery in Australia. Weblink: http://www.murraysbrewingco.com.au |
During
last weekend’s Good Food and Wine Show in Melbourne the man
behind Murray’s Craft Brewing Company, Murray Howe (right) enthusiastically
poured The Spouse and me his brews and we sipped and savoured
them with equal enthusiasm.
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